Matthew Williams who runs The Crispy Cod, in Tonyrefail, Wales’ best fish and chip shop two years running, said chips offered good value in troubled times.

He said: “The last few years, with the recession, people can’t afford to go out to restaurants. People are eating out a lot more, they’ve got to work more overtime.

“People haven’t got the time to go home and cook a nice meal that might take two or three hours. They take the easy option of ordering a takeaway.

“It’s a good nutritional meal that’s good value for money. It’s a really good value meal – if you got an Indian for two, you’d probably spend 15 to 20 quid, you can get fish and chips for two for £10.50.”

Sian Porter, a dietician and spokeswoman for the British Dietetic Association, agreed the cost of chips was key.

She said: “Chips are quite an affordable takeaway.

“A standard portion of chips is £1.50, £2, so it is something that is affordable. It is an affordable treat.”

But she warned that people should cut down if they wanted to stay healthy.

She said: “Potatoes are a great choice, they’re rich in vitamin C but the key thing about buying chips us to have them as an occasional treat.

“Most chip shops now fry in vegetable oil rather than lard. If they fry in hot enough fat, they absorb less fat. Fat chips are better than thin ones.

“You can buy oven chips, which are healthier, but there’s nothing quite like a chip shop chip. If you’re buying look at sharing because the portions are enormous.”

Sioned Quirke, a leading specialist dietician in South Wales, said: “I think its part of a Welsh tradition to have fish and chips every Friday.

“Chips are part of our lives in Wales. When we go out to eat a lot of the food comes with chips, although I think people also order a bowl for the table as well.

“To be honest we don’t even recommend that you have chips once a week, they’re so high in saturated fat and calories.

“People who come to see us, they say my treat on a weekend is chips. If you’re losing weight or you have diabetes, you might want to look at a different kind of treat.”

Mr Williams said by using good quality ingredients, including cooking fat, the meal could still be a relatively healthy option.

He said: “It’s a good quality meal – fish and chips is the healthiest takeaway – it’s 5.2g in a portion. You could eat four fish and chips, that is the equivalent of one chicken Tikka Marsala and Pilau rice (in terms of fat and calories).”

The stats suggest Wales is getting the health message, with the average amount people in Wales eat falling by 23% over the past 10 years.

We are also shunning kebabs, down 59%, and meat pies and sausage rolls, down 54%.

Ms Porter said: “There has been a lot of press about the link between processed meats and cancer and there was a government campaign on saturated fat, focusing on pastries and processed meats and the five a day message has been heavily promoted.

The figures suggest we may be swapping to the vegetarian option while out, with the amount of veggie burgers eaten up 83%, vegetarian pizza up 68% and veggie lasagne up 66%.

Ms Quirke said: “It’s two things, they’re more available. A few years ago, the vegetarian option would not be as widely sold as they are now. Now it’s much easier for people to make that choice.

“And I think a lot of people do opt for the veggie option because they think they’re healthier in terms of saturated fat.” People are buying them because they’re more available and because they’re trying to be healthier.”

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